"There's no need to be so mo--" Lee started to say, entirely prepared to squirm his way into his honored rival and teammate's current dilemma and by extension his heart. But then he stopped dead in his tracks, words faltering mid-sentence as his mind scrambled to catch up with Neji's open invitation for Lee's aid, his already fairly large eyes widening further still in shock.
Shock which quickly transformed into awe and delight.
"Oh, I see...!! You are shopping for your esteemed cousin's birthday! I would be more than glad to offer my assistance!" he exclaimed all at once, rushing up to join Neji properly as he, too, perused the wares. He admittedly knew little of Hinata himself, only that she was a sweet girl with a sunny disposition he admired now and then from afar. Still, though he did not know the gift's intended recipient well, he did think of himself as knowing a thing or two about gift-giving. He had learned from the best, after all!
"Well, an effective present should be something the recipient wants, but also clearly have come from uniquely you!" he explained as he stroked his chin, intensely surveying the items laid out before them.
"That is to say, when she looks at it, ideally it will invoke thoughts of her beloved cousin, Neji, and bring an immediate smile to her face! That is why Gai-sensei and myself like to give gifts of our very own spandex suits...!" he elaborated, giving a sage nod at his excellent illustration of his point. "They are practical, comfortable, and bring us strongly to mind! So...!"
Grinning broadly, Lee reached out to pluck up a fine, fluffy stuffed owl toy, one with a strong, discerning brow line fairly reminiscent of a certain serious-faced Hyuuga in their midst.
"Aha! But wait--!!"
Seeming to ponder some missing detail with the object at hand, Lee glanced between it and Neji several times before reaching out and physically absconding with Neji's forehead protector, affixing it to the stuffed owl's head instead.
"There! Now it's perfect! It's a striking resemblance, don't you think?"
THIS IS WHAT YOU CALL RUSHED???
Shock which quickly transformed into awe and delight.
"Oh, I see...!! You are shopping for your esteemed cousin's birthday! I would be more than glad to offer my assistance!" he exclaimed all at once, rushing up to join Neji properly as he, too, perused the wares. He admittedly knew little of Hinata himself, only that she was a sweet girl with a sunny disposition he admired now and then from afar. Still, though he did not know the gift's intended recipient well, he did think of himself as knowing a thing or two about gift-giving. He had learned from the best, after all!
"Well, an effective present should be something the recipient wants, but also clearly have come from uniquely you!" he explained as he stroked his chin, intensely surveying the items laid out before them.
"That is to say, when she looks at it, ideally it will invoke thoughts of her beloved cousin, Neji, and bring an immediate smile to her face! That is why Gai-sensei and myself like to give gifts of our very own spandex suits...!" he elaborated, giving a sage nod at his excellent illustration of his point. "They are practical, comfortable, and bring us strongly to mind! So...!"
Grinning broadly, Lee reached out to pluck up a fine, fluffy stuffed owl toy, one with a strong, discerning brow line fairly reminiscent of a certain serious-faced Hyuuga in their midst.
"Aha! But wait--!!"
Seeming to ponder some missing detail with the object at hand, Lee glanced between it and Neji several times before reaching out and physically absconding with Neji's forehead protector, affixing it to the stuffed owl's head instead.
"There! Now it's perfect! It's a striking resemblance, don't you think?"